Shadows of Adulation
by tigerfriend1999
Summary: Link is constantly haunted by horrifying visions of Malon imprisoned in the Shadow Temple. When he finds out that she has mysteriously disappeared, he investigates-only to become a prisoner there himself. Now both Link and Malon are trapped in the Shadow Temple with no way out, and only a revived Deadhand to keep them company. Malink. T for mild violence, but nothing dirty. R&R!
1. Prologue

_**Prologue**_

_...Wh-what...where is this..._

_...Is this the Shadow Temple...?_

_...But I was just here...why is this..._

_"Link! Help!"_

_Huh?_

_"Liiiiink!"_

_Malon...? Malon what are you doing here...OH NAYRU HAVE MERCY! MALON!_

_"Link! Don't let it-AAAAAAUUUUUUGH!"_

Link jerked awake, sweat drenching his blankets, his breathing ragged. Just a dream...just a dream... He buried his face in his trembling hands. It had felt so real...it was so terrifying...and he didn't know what had caused it. Malon was fine...she wasn't chained in the Shadow Temple...she was safe at the ranch...he focused on getting his breathing back to normal.

Next to his pillow, Navi stirred and disentangled herself from the sheets. "Link?" she questioned sleepily. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah...yeah I'm fine...just a nightmare..."

"Was it the same one?" she asked, flitting to his shoulder and trying to smooth his rumpled hair. Link took a deep, shuddery breath before hesitantly answering, wishing it wasn't true.

"Yes..."

**A/N: Sorry that "The Hope In Green" didn't go anywhere, but I just felt like it wasn't worth the trouble. I'm actually pretty excited about this one. It shouldn't be too unbearably long, and hopefully Chapter One will be up within the next day or two. Keep reading, my little friends! -"Niki Bogwater"**


	2. Chapter One

_**Chapter One**_

"Hey," Navi chirped. Link moaned and pulled a blanket over his ear. "Hey! Link, it's time to get up!" she shouted, tugging at the blankets.

"Fife mo' minist Nav'..." he mumbled into the pillow.

"Yeah, right. I know how you are. By five more minutes, you mean two more hours."

"Then wake me up in two hours..." he yawned. Navi groaned. It wasn't going to be a very productive morning. 

_Malon's head felt like someone had replaced her brain with a two-ton rock. She slowly creeped her way back to consciousness, suddenly aware of the throbbing aches of her back and arms. She cautiously opened her eyes, almost afraid of what she might see. She wished she had kept them closed._

_Dried blood covered the ground like spilled paint. The cold stones against her back and underneath her were damp and clammy. Her nose twinged as a wave of senses overtook her, and she suddenly became aware that the whole place reeked of rotten meat...or flesh...she wasn't sure which._

_She started to get to her feet, but only succeeded in making her world spin wildly. Her wrists throbbed. She looked down at the manacles cutting off blood flow through her wrists. She was chained to the blood stained wall. The weird thing was...she couldn't remember what happened...Oh, Din, send help soon...she thought groggily before dipping back into unconsciousness._

"So where are we going today?" Navi asked as Link climbed down from his old treehouse. She had somehow managed to get him out of bed (which was a miracle in itself) and was now in a hurry to tackle the next Temple, or whatever they had to do for his quest.

"I thought we'd go to Lon Lon Ranch today," Link answered. "I think seeing Malon might make me stop having those dreams every night..."

"Seems to me that seeing Malon can fix any of your problems," Navi giggled, earning a half-hearted swipe from Link in return. She dodged it agilely. "Well, I'm not blind you know!" she insisted, her words drowning in giggles. "You make it pretty obvious that you like her!"

"Why wouldn't I?" Link answered, trying to resist the urge to capture Navi in a bottle. Epona was waiting for them by the exit to Hyrule Field. She whinnied happily and nuzzled Link when he approached. "She's a nice person," he continued, hoisting himself onto the saddle. "She taught me Epona's song and let me keep her, she's taken care of me when I was hurt, and she helped me get into the castle when we were kids. I think anybody would like her."

"Don't be so naive!" Navi squawked. "You know what I mean!"

"I wish I didn't, because right now I am trying to suppress a fierce desire to feed you to an Octorok." Navi yelped and darted away.

Lon Lon Ranch was eerily silent. The wind echoed through the walls, sounding hollow and stale without Malon's voice floating among it. It was too...quiet. Even the horses seemed to be unhappy, wandering around the corral and sniffing at the air, like they were looking for someone.

Link was starting to feel very uneasy. As a child, he had often been plagued with nightmares, some of which came true, but he hadn't really given those dreams much thought. Now the vision of Malon chained to a wall and screaming for help as a Gibdo started choking the life breath out of her haunted him constantly, never seeming to recede into the darker recesses of his mind completely. It was a bit like a shadow...always present...never ignorable.

"Maybe she's in the barn?" Navi suggested, sensing her partner's agitation. Link wordlessly nodded and redirected his steps to the barn, as the silent wind nipped at the farm. The cows in the barn were lowing unhappily, and Link noticed the milk pails by their stalls were still waiting to be filled. That was weird. Malon never, ever forgot to milk her precious cows.

"Perhaps she's sick today," Navi tried half-heartedly. At this point, Link was starting to feel downright scared. His fairy wasn't doing much better, and she bobbed along ahead of him, scanning the pasture for their red-headed target. "Why don't we try the house?" she said, trying to sound chipper. Link was already by the doorway now.

He knocked hesitantly, trying to shake himself together. Come on, you're being ridiculous, he chided himself. You've had weird dreams before. Just because this one keeps coming doesn't mean that it's anything more than a simple nightmare... Simple...if it were simple, why did it keep coming back...more importantly, why was he so terrified of it? Ingo answered the door, looking tired. He brightened when he saw Link.

"Oh, hello, Link! Talon, look who it is!" He looked over his shoulder, probably in Talon's general direction, Link assumed. He was answered by a half-hearted mumble.

"I...I...uh, is M-Malon here?" Link stuttered, nonplussed at Talon's odd behavior. Normally he was the first one out the door to thump Link painfully on the back and shove his daughter in his face.

"Malon? What do you know about Malon!" Talon shouted, suddenly jumping up and shoving Ingo aside. He grabbed Link's shoulders and shook him a bit. "Tell me, lad! Where is she?!" Navi ducked under Link's hat and cowered in his hair.

"I...I don't know...I was hoping you did..." he fumbled, panic taking the place of any other feeling in his heart. Malon was gone...Talon didn't know where she was...and those dreams...He felt like he was going to be sick. Something had happened to Malon. Something that he was somehow connected to. Her blood was on his hands. The thought of anyone trying to spill that blood made him want to break something.

Talon gave a despondent moan and backed into the house again, collapsing on the couch. Ingo got up off the floor where he had landed after Talon had shoved him, and stepped quietly outside, closing the door. He faced a very pale Link, looking just as worried as he did. "She's been gone for about two days now..." he said, his voice hoarse. "It's all I can do to get Talon to feed himself...he's absolutely sick with worry..."

"Do you...know what happened to her?" Link gulped. Ingo shook his head sadly.

"She was making milk deliveries to Kakariko, but her horse came back with a full cart, and Malon wasn't with it." Link felt like he was going to throw up. He wanted to go deaf, he wanted to lie down and faint. This couldn't be happening...this couldn't be happening... "We've sent out her description, but no one has seen any trace of her. It's like the cart got halfway Kakariko and she dissipated into thin air. The horse came back with an odd gash on his shoulder, and he was pretty shook up, but there's nothing to look for. She's just...disappeared..."

Link held himself steady against the wall. Navi flitted out from his hat and stared at him worriedly. "I...I have to find her..." he said hoarsely to no one in particular. "This is probably my fault..." Ingo started to say something, but Link was already on Epona again, kicking her into a gallop. Although it made him feel like his gut was going to explode, he knew where she was...

**A/N: I'm baaaaaack! Sorry, this one took a little longer to finish. But at least now we're up to speed on what's going on. Malon has disappeared and is stuck in the Shadow Temple, and now Link has to go find her. Why is she in the Shadow Temple? Will Link get her out alive? *Dun dun duuuuun* Obviously, to find out, you'll have to stay tuned. REVIEW! I won't post chapter two until I get a minimum of three reviews! Muahahahaha! -"Niki Bogwater"**


	3. Chapter Two

_**Chapter Two:**_

Link shuddered as he stared down the dark stairway of the Temple of Shadow. Navi huddled under his hat, anticipating the evil that still lurked within. Although he had defeated Bongo-Bongo a few days ago, and freed Impa as a sage, there was an impenetrable darkness that would always remain there. Link was not looking forward to descending into that darkness. But he refused to turn back. The vision of Malon chained to a wall, dying as she desperately screamed for help washed over him again, sending a chill down his spine. _Just hold on, Mal_, he thought, gulping. _I'm coming..._

Navi clung to Link's shoulder as he slowly descended into the shadows below. "Do you have any idea where she is?" she whispered, afraid of drawing attention to themselves. Link shook his head.

"If that weird dream was anything to go on, she's probably in a room I've never been in before. We'll just have to look around until we find something new. I thought we'd start with-"

"Shhh!" Navi hissed, fear in her voice. "Do you hear that?" Link stopped, holding stock still. A very faint rumbling, then a loud cracking, and a boom. Link turned around and gasped. The door to the Shadow Temple had closed behind him. He was trapped. Navi squeaked with distress and flew back up the steps, beating on the door with her fists.

"It's no good, Navi!" Link shouted, running up behind her. "It can only be opened when all the torches outside are lit. My guess is that they got...blown out...or..." Link trailed off as an all-too-familiar voice echoed down the long hallway in maniacal laughter. Navi yelped and shuddered. Link barely had enough time to catch her as she started to fall, waves of darkness weakening her. "Navi, hide!" he ordered. She crawled into his hat. They both knew who was behind this.

Link drew his sword, gritting his teeth angrily. "Okay, Ganondorf!" he shouted into the darkness. "Where is she?"

"You'll have plenty of time to find your peasant girl, Hero of Time..." The dark lord's voice boomed from the shadows, his tone silky and amused. "You're going to be here for a while..."

"Let her go!" Link bellowed, his voice resounding like thunder through the temple walls. "Why are you bringing her into this? She has nothing to do with any of this!"

"I didn't bring her into this," Ganondorf's voice answered calmly. "You did."

"Wh-what?" Link lowered his sword, a little caught off guard by Ganondorf's words.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out in the time it takes for this temple to finish you," Ganondorf answered coolly. There was a sickening crack, and the strong waves of darkness disappeared, leaving only the eerie shadows that were a product of the temple's magic.

"What a jerk!" Navi spat, returning from the safety of Link's hat. "I guess we'd better open that door, first thing."

"Huh?"

Navi giggled. "His Royal Forgetfulness didn't take into account that you are in possession of the Ocarina of Time. You can just play the Nocturne of Shadow and warp outside, open the door again, find Malon, and let yourself out." Link visibly brightened.

"Navi, sometimes I forget how unforgetful you are," he said, smiling and withdrawing the ocarina from his satchel. Navi sat on his shoulder and listened as the notes floated from the instrument, clear and slow. The tune was mysterious and dark, and yet it sounded hopeful as well. Link paused at the end, waiting for the familiar baubles of purple light to surround him and drop him in the graveyard. Nothing happened.

Link groaned. "Obviously, Ganondorf isn't as stupid as we've made him out to be..." He sighed, pocketing his ocarina and turning to explore the dark recesses of the temple that had become his prison. Navi flitted after him, confused.

"I don't get it," she said, following him closely. "Why didn't we warp?"

"Ganondorf's plan. He's put some sort of spell on the temple that's keeping me from warping anywhere. At least, that seems to be what's happening. Let's just find Malon, and then we'll worry about it."

_Malon was shivering uncontrollably. She was exhausted, but she didn't dare go to sleep. The shadows seemed to dance around her, taunting her. At one point she could have sworn that she saw Link, only to have her heart break again when a shadow jumped, and revealed him to be another figment of the temple's magic. Every few moments, something sharp would prick her, drawing blood. She never saw what it was or who was doing it. It seemed as though the shadows themselves were torturing her._

_At this point, she'd given up all hope of rescue. It had been two days since she was kidnapped on her way to Kakariko. She didn't remember exactly what happened, only that her cart was attacked by a mysterious group of riders, and she was knocked unconscious. She'd woken up like this, chained to the wall and surrounded by darkness, doomed to be subjected to pure terror and pain until she eventually died of dehydration or starvation._

_At first, she was almost positive that Link would come to save her. He had once told her that if she ever needed him, he'd come for her, no matter what. So she had calmly and patiently endured the torment of her prison, confidant that her best friend would soon run in knight-in-shining-armor-style, fight off the darkness, and bring her home. But two days later, there was still no sign of him. Malon was starving, her throat felt dry and sore, and she was covered with cuts and bruises, and those horrible things hiding in the darkness continued to hurt her. She wanted to sob her eyes out, but it hurt so much...And it wouldn't do any good. If anything, it would encourage the shadows to hurt her even more. She was resigned to the fact that she was going to die._

_*********_  
"We've been through every inch of this place twice!" Link cried despairingly.

"Don't give up!" Navi cheered, smoothing his bangs out of his face in an effort to comfort him. "Ganondorf didn't say he had killed her. What if she was alive this whole time and you gave up on looking for her? You could be just a few doors away from her and she would die never knowing it! You've gotta keep going!"

Link shuddered at the thought. He knew Navi was right. Even if Malon was already dead...he had to at least find her body to bring back to Talon. He sent up his twenty-eighth prayer to whoever was listening that she would be alive when he found her. Malon meant an awful lot to him...He wasn't sure what it was. Zelda meant a lot to him, too, but it wasn't the same as the way he felt about Malon. He wanted to see Zelda again, and he didn't like the idea of her getting hurt, but Malon almost took it to extremities. Whenever he wasn't around her, he kept thinking about her, examining her over and over in his mind, trying to figure out what it was that attracted him to her. The only thing he really knew for sure was that he'd rather die than let Malon down. He sighed, standing up again, his weary legs screaming obscene things at him. "Try using the Lens of Truth," Navi suggested. "Perhaps Ganondorf has put her in a new room that you can't see." Link already felt drained as it was, but he managed to summon enough strength to peer through the lens, trying to focus.

"Navi..." he began slowly. "Navi, I think I found it!" He shoved the Lens of Truth back in his satchel and bounded joyously to an apparently solid brick wall. He passed right through it harmlessly, and found himself facing the door he had been looking for. "That was a solid wall the last time we were here," he said, almost brightly. "I guess you were right."

"Well don't just stand here celebrating!" Navi squealed. "Open that door!"

Link took a deep breath, fearful of what he might find, but also unwilling to give up hope. He slowly opened the door and silently crept in. He was standing on a small platform overlooking a huge bottomless pit that stretched across the room. On the other side was another platform, with two wooden posts set on either side. Huddled against the wall, her face buried in her arms, shivering but still alive, was-

"MALON!"

**A/N: So we're getting closer to the climax. Yeah, I know I said I wouldn't post chapter two until I had gotten at least three reviews, but people wisely didn't take me seriously. Evidently, you all know that I'm just as worried about Malon as you are (at least, I hope you're worried about her. If you're not, I must be a terrible writer). But seriously, please review. This is kind of my first time actually writing fanfiction, so I really need to know if I'm good at this, or if this is a lost cause. So yeah, a few words of encouragement, or a few words of harsh criticism would be greatly appreciated. -"Niki Bogwater" **


	4. Chapter Three

_**Chapter Three:**_

"Malon!" he shouted, relief flooding his entire being. Her head snapped up and her eyes widened as they planted themselves on him. She was deathly pale, and her eyes were sunken and red. She started to shout something as she pulled against her chains, but she was cut off by a horrible grinding sound.

Two ReDeads dropped through the ceiling, giving what sounded like a raspy cry of surprise. Time seemed to slow down, and in one agonizing moment, Link watched in horror as they fixed their empty gazes on the girl chained to the wall.

Link didn't have time to think. Everything just seemed to happen by itself He fired his longshot at a wooden post and flew over the gap in the floor. Malon gave a panicked little cry, but was quickly silenced as she was caught in the paralyzing gaze of a ReDead. It screamed hungrily and slowly advanced toward her. The other one noticed Link and gave another shriek, but he managed to thrust his sword into its gut before the paralysis could take effect. He was frozen for a split second as the monster gave a gasp and fell to the floor. He wrenched his sword loose and lunged at the other Redead, who was gripping Malon's face in its crusty hands and moving in for the kill. Link hacked the monster's head clear from it's rotted shoulders and brutally kicked its limp body away from Malon, who gasped sharply as she snapped free from paralysis.

Link threw himself down on his knees in front of Malon, and it seemed like barely even a second before the shackles fell free from her wrists and she was folded into the safety of his arms. She was sobbing hysterically and clutching him with surprising strength. Link tightened his grip on her, pressing her freezing body close to his warm one. His neck and left shoulder were soaked with her tears, but he wasn't too concerned with that.

"Oh, Link!" she sobbed, her voice muffled as she buried her face in his shoulder. "I th-thought I'd n-never see you again!"

"Shhh...I'm here...I got you...everything's gonna be fine..." Link cradled her quivering body gently, enjoying the feeling of her arms around his neck.

"It's been so h-h-horrib-ble!" she cried, shivering like a child during a thunderstorm. "The sh-shadows kept h-hurting me and it was s-so cold and I'm s-so tired and..." All her suffering and torment from the past two days came pouring out, garbled in sobs and muffled in his tunic.

"I know, I know..." Link whispered, rubbing her back and trying to seep warmth into her. She was covered in scratches and bruises, and her skin was as pale as a pearl. She was dangerously thin, like the temple had just sucked the life right out of her. Link felt his grip tighten involuntarily in a wave of anger. _How could anyone dare to hurt such a sweet girl..._

"Everything's going to be alright," he whispered, his voice shaking a bit. "I won't let anything hurt you again, I promise..." Malon shuddered as her sobs died down, trying to position herself so that there was no empty space between her and Link. He was holding her as tight as was humanly possible. She could feel his heart beating rapidly against her chest, a contrast to how gentle and calm he was.

They weren't sure how long they just sat there, gripping each other and appreciating the reality that they were finally together again. Link finally managed to loosen his grip and whisper something to Navi, who flitted off into the darkness obligingly. Malon looked at Link questioningly, tears still stinging her eyelashes.

"She's going to go find a way out of here," he answered simply. He gently set her down, still clinging to her with one hand and allowing her arms to stay wound around him. He rummaged around in his satchel for a moment, and then smiled a bit as his hand clasped around a cool bottle of Lon Lon Milk. He uncorked it and brought it to Malon's trembling lips.

"Drink it all. It'll help." Malon ravenously accepted, gulping down the milk hungrily. Link had guessed correctly that she hadn't had anything to eat or drink in the two days she was trapped here.

Malon sighed shakily with satisfaction as Link pocketed the empty bottle. Her stomach churned with pleasure as the milk sent a filling warmth through her body. Link inched backwards until he was leaning against the wall, Malon's head resting against his shoulder. She hadn't untangled her arms from his neck the entire time. One hand was cupped against her cheek, his thumb erasing the tracks left by the tears that had cascaded down her face. The other lay draped over her waist, gripping his sword, almost like it was daring anything else to try and hurt her again.

"You need to rest now," he said softly. "Don't worry, nothing is going to hurt you anymore." Malon nodded, relief washing over her like a scented breeze. She had been waiting for this minute for two long, horrible days, this moment when she'd finally be safe with Link, listening as he promised to protect her. She had never felt more at peace than she did in that moment. She took one last shuddery, deep breath, savoring the fact that he was really there, and the horrors of the past two days were finally over. Just as she let sleep overtake her, she whispered softly,

"I know...thank you...for being my hero..." Link smiled.

"My pleasure..."

**A/N: Fluff is my specialty. Even when the climax is pounding down on my door, I always make time for fluff like this. Personally, this is one of my favorite scenes, even if it is short and fluffy to the point of being sickening. REVIEW! I need to know if this is the worst garbage you've ever read, or if you like it enough for me to keep going. Ciao until next time! -"Niki Bogwater"**

_**Updates! Yaaaay! I've been going back and revising some of the chapters before I wrap this beauty up for good. Yeah, I know everyone was hoping for me to hurry up and finish this work of art (hah!), but I decided to torment you with meaningless revisions and updates instead. :P**_


	5. Chapter Four

_**Chapter Four**_

Link hadn't expected to fall asleep. But he was the type of person who could just all of a sudden be pounced upon by weariness, no matter where he was, and wake up hours later trying to remember when he went from being awake to being asleep. However it happened, he awoke with a very sore back (sleeping on a stone floor will do that to you) to find Navi nestled comfortably in his hair. Malon was still cuddled against his shoulder, and for a moment Link was horrified to remember that he slobbered in his sleep, but she appeared to be unscathed.

Navi, aware that her bed was stirring, peeked out from under his hat and gave a squeaky little yawn. "G'morning, sleepyhead," she said softly.

"Hi..." Link croaked.

"You know, you two look awfully cute together..." Navi snickered. If he hadn't been worried that he'd wake Malon up, Link would have taken his Megaton Hammer to Navi.

"How do we get out of here?" he grumbled, throwing her a venomous glare, which only succeeded in increasing her giggles.

"I checked all the exits. Ganondorf has them blocked up," she whispered, still sniggering behind her hand. "There was one that looked like he was distracted or something; there was a tiny hole in the wall that he made. I'm not sure if bombs will work against Ganondorf's magic, but it would be worth a try. Oh, and there's something-" Navi was cut off as Malon shifted, blinked, stretched, and sat up, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"Morning, Mal," Navi chirped.

"Hi, Navi, Link," Malon yawned. "How long was I out?"

"I'd say about eleven hours, but it's hard to tell for certain," Link answered with a half-shrug. Malon blushed a bit.

"Ooh, that's gonna mess up my schedule..." she moaned. Link chuckled a little, and Malon shoved him playfully. "Hey, just because you don't have a schedule to keep!"

"Oh, is that so? Well it just so happens I do run a very rigid schedule!"

"Oh, really," Malon smirked.

"Yes. At eleven I get out of bed and threaten to kill Navi."

"I can witness to that..." Navi muttered.

"At twelve, I treck across Hyrule Field to the next temple, and if I'm lucky, I'm out by three, which gives me just enough time to go damsel-in-distress-hunting before I eat lunch."

"_LINK!_" Malon squawked, trying to contain her gales of laughter. She was unusually cheerful for someone who had just spent two days all alone in a place that basically just sucked the life out of you.

Navi cleared her throat as Malon lunged at Link to start a tickle war. "If you two lover-kids are done rough-housing, we should be going."

"Fine..." Link sighed laboriously, rolling off of a breathless and giggling Malon long enough to grab his sword again before pulling her back on her feet. She felt her cheeks get hot as he tightly wrapped an arm around her waist and set his hookshot. "Don't let go of me," he whispered, a millisecond before they were flying off the ground.

"Ack!" Malon nearly suffocated him with her tight grip, clinging to him with a strength that was normally used in dealing with rogue cows on the farm. It took him a good five minutes to get her to let go after they landed.

"Mal, as pleasant as this is, you're sort of cutting off my air flow." Navi giggled uncontrollably as Link unsuccessfully tried to pry himself loose from a dazed and unresponsive Malon. A minute later, she snapped out of her sheer terror and managed to look away from the endless abyss that they had just been thrown across.

"Don't. Ever. Do. That. AGAIN." she squeaked.

It took a few more minutes to get Malon to stand up properly (her legs kept collapsing like a jelly sculpture). Link inwardly groaned as he remembered that the moment she was gone, Navi would probably tear into him, ripping him to shreds with her teasing. Malon wasn't too comfortable going through an apparently solid brick wall, either, but she was more obliging than most girls, and managed to follow Link through. She bumped into his back as he suddenly stopped.

"What's..." She followed his eyes. Her hand flew to her mouth. She felt like she was going to be sick. Huge slimy, bloodied arms towered above them, writhing and wriggling like strange plants. They seemed to be growing straight out of the ground.

"That wasn't here before!" Link yelped as one of the hands, sensing their presence, made a sluggish swipe in their direction, missing them by a good four feet. A gelatinous white glob pulled itself out of the ground, bloodied and rotted. It's hands poked and prodded it like clay. The neck shot out of the lump of white flesh, a hideous, half-eaten face pushing its way through the misshapen jelly.

"What is that thing?" Malon squeaked, pulling herself closer to Link.

"Deadhand..." Navi whispered shakily. "We are gonna die..."

**A/N: Nope, I'm not dead, this one just took a long time to come out from under the writer's block. So now we're getting close to the end. Next chapter will hopefully be a bit longer and lean closer towards the conclusion, rather than the climax. Special thanks to all who have reviewed. You guys are the BOMB! Keep those opinions flowing in, ladies and gentlemen! I love to hear what you think. -"Niki Bogwater"**


	6. Chapter Five

_**Chapter Five**_

Sometimes words start coming out of your mouth without your brain thinking them through carefully. Link had this unfortunate habit much worse than the average person, and it chose the unfortunate time to pop up right in that moment as the monstrous Deadhand started lumbering after them.

"Navi, get Malon out! I'll hold him off!" _Oh, you idiot...why did you say that...that thing is going to pummel you within two seconds...Stupid stupid stupid..._ He did a mental facepalm and shoved a reluctant Malon towards a random door.

"But what about..." she started to protest.

"Go!" he shouted, his better judgement screaming many harsh words in his brain.

"LINK!" she screamed as a huge hand shot up out of the ground and wrapped itself around his leg. Before he could register what was going on, he was flung halfway across the room, thrown against a wall three or four times, and suddenly found himself dangling right in front of the Deadhand's disgusting excuse for a mouth, the Master Sword clanging to the ground uselessly, along with a majority of his other weapons. It screeched in his face, it's putrid breath making him gag. _Oh, Nayru, please let Malon get out okay..._ He squeezed his eyes shut, not wanting to watch himself get killed.

"Put him down this _instant!_" Malon screeched, snatching up Link's bow from the ground where it had fallen and expertly firing an arrow at the monster. Blood spurted everywhere, and Link was dropped painfully to the floor as the Deadhand screamed in agony, an arrow lodged in one of its arms.

"M-Malon?" Link gasped as the Deadhand made an unsuccessful lunge at the farm girl, who sidestepped and shot another arrow into its face. It roared angrily and grabbed at her with several arms, but she dodged nimbly and fired another one, this time making a nice-sized wound in its neck. "What the..." Link gaped at Malon, who dodged another attack and stunned one of the many grasping arms with a powerful kick.

"Link, get the Master Sword!" Navi shrieked, fluttering to him and yanking on his golden bangs. He snapped out of his shock and hastily dragged himself to his sword. The Deadhand lunged, this time distracting Malon long enough to snatch her up easily in several different arms at once. She gave a squeaky little yelp, and Link drove the Master sword into the monster's back.

He leaned against the sword for support, pain arching up his twisted leg as the bloodied flesh melted back into the ground, the writhing arms dropping Malon and retreating into the floor, shriveling and bleeding. She scrambled to Link the moment she was free, nearly crushing him in a hug.

"Are you okay?" she squeaked, pushing him down to take the pressure off his leg. He only managed to give a few labored pants in response.

"Wha-wh-what was that?" he gasped when he was finally able to talk again. Malon looked up from his leg, which she had been prodding anxiously.

"Huh?"

"You...that...was amazing...when did you learn to fight like that?" He yelped as her gentle fingers made contact with a nasty bruise.

"Oh no, I'm so sorry!" She quickly snatched her hand away and started digging through Link's satchel for something to wrap around his leg.

"It's fine...just tell me how you did that..."

"I was only checking for broken bones, and I must've brushed a sensitive-" Link shushed her with a hand on her arm. "Not the bruise, Mal. How did you know how to fight that monster off?"

"I...ummmm..."

"That thing was a work of Ganondorf's magic," Navi put in, a hint of pride tickling her voice. "Deadhands are normally easy to take out, but that one was abnormally large and powerful."

"Exactly." Link turned back to Malon. She blushed as his eyes met hers. He was obviously quite proud of her.

"Well...I'm not completely helpless..." she whispered, flushing deeply. "You give most girls a fair chance, and they'll take it...hold still now, I need to wrap up your leg." Link decided not to press the matter any farther, and remained silent as she wound a few bandages around his bloodied leg.

"That moment...when you realize that your girlfriend could totally kill you..." Navi burst into a hysterical fit of giggles as Malon's blush deepened.

"Shut up, Navi..." Link groaned, pulling himself to his feet again and helping Malon up. "I think now would be a good time to just get out of here before anything else happens."

"Agreed," Malon answered wearily, handing his bow back with a shy smile.

"Uhh...Malon?" Link murmured once Navi was floating ahead of them and out of hearing range. "Thanks...for saving my life..." Malon flushed so hard it looked like her cheeks were on fire.

"You're welcome..." she whispered, beaming at him.

**A/N: Okay, so this one isn't as long as I wanted it to be. Curse you, Writer's Block! *shakes fist* Oh, well. Hopefully I can get this wrapped up within the next chapter or two. **

**Be honest; you totally didn't see Malon's ninja skills coming. After all this "damsel in distress" bit and classic rescue mush, you totally weren't expecting this. Am I right? Huh? :P Review! I want to know if this was as big a shock to you as it was to Link! -"Niki Bogwater"**


	7. Interlude

_**A/N:**_

_**Fear not, beloved readers. I'm still alive (sort of...heheh...). It's just that I have been almost completely crushed by Writer's Block for the past month. I apologize for the delay, but I **__**PROMISE**__** I will finish this story for you.**_

_**Ciao,**_

_**-"Niki Bogwater"**_


	8. Chapter Six (the shortest chapter!)

Chapter Six

Navi flitted ahead of them carelessly, leading them down a dark path that Malon could only pray led to safety. A rush of wind echoed down the corridor, and she felt Link's hand tense...wait, how could she feel his hand? She looked down suddenly, and discovered that she still hadn't let go of his hand.

"So..." she began slowly, hoping to keep him from noticing. She liked the feeling of her hand in his...it felt like it fit so perfectly...Link looked at her sideways, encouraging her that he was listening. "Why...did you come here?" Link snorted and choked and coughed, and did everything he could to keep it contained, but he tragically failed, and burst into hysterical gales of laughter. "It's not funny Link!" Malon scolded, trying to sound firm despite the fact that she was smiling herself.

"Well then why is it so amusing?" Link countered after he had recovered.

"I'm serious. I want to know why you came."

"Come off it, Mal, you know why I came." She felt his hand squeeze hers, and she wasn't sure if it was entirely involuntary. Either way, Link didn't seem to notice, and continued to examine her face for an answer.

"Right...okay, so, you came to save me. I can play along with that."

"Malon, what the heck are you getting at?" Link suddenly stopped, his hand still clasped around hers. She reluctantly turned to face him.

"Link, I get it. You came to rescue me. Whoop-de-doo...but that can't be the only reason."

"Why can't it?"

"You're kidding, right?"

"Do I look it?"

"I'm not going to answer that..."

"Mal," he said, his voice suddenly harsh. "Do I look like I am kidding?" He had a hand beneath her chin, restricting her head, forcing her to look at him.

"Look, all I want to know is why else would you come here?! I'm not worth it, you could've let me die!"

"Malon."

"What?!" she almost screamed, feeling frustrated.

"Shut up."

She was so shocked she had to obey. She couldn't think of anything else to say.

"There wasn't any other reason. Is that seriously what you think of me? That I'd only take the trouble to be your hero if I happened to just...ah...'be in the neighborhood?'"

"Well, look at me! I'm not worth that, not to you!"

"SHUT UP!" Link bellowed. Malon squeaked a little gasp and fell silent, staring at him with wide, glassy eyes. Navi had stopped flying ahead, and was intensely watching from around a corner. Intense silence tortured Link's ears again. He hated it. He had been in absolute silence and solitude for seven years. He hated silence.

But he couldn't break this silence. He wouldn't. There wasn't anything left to say. He was just like his father...

He never let go of her hand as he turned his icy glare away from her. They kept walking. That's all they could do. Malon was confused and hurt, Link was confused, hurt, AND terrified that _it_ would happen again. Navi took her place at the head reluctantly, guiding them.

Another wonderful adventure, ruined, plagued by the fears from the past.

**A/N: "****_Here lies Niki Bogwater, crushed by Writers Block in October of 2013..."_****Wait...the ground...it's moving...she...SHE'S ALIVE! BLAAAAARGH!**

**Well, glad my Writer's Block broke. I am back on track and it feels good to be alive (or does it...muahahaha!) Anyhoo, I wanted to tie in a little epic backstory elements, maybe really get inside Link's head (and Malon's) this time around. We're getting a bit more psychological now. And believe me, I know aaaaaaall about psychological...mweheheheheh... Please review, I love my reviews.**

**Happy Halloween!**

**-"Niki Bogwater"**


	9. Chapter Seven

_**Chapter Seven**_

"He didn't mean it, you know," Navi said softly, coming to rest on Malon's shoulder. Link was leaning against a wall a good distance away, keeping an eye out for danger. After about two hours of non-stop walking, they still hadn't found the exit. Link had finally given in to his body's pleadings and had everyone stop to rest.

"I know..." Malon sighed. "I'm not sure I understand, though..."

Navi sighed this time, a plaintive, whistling sound that clashed with the cheerful flutter of her wings. "Mal, there's something he's never told you...or anyone for that matter..." Malon locked her eyes on the fairy, listening intently. "He's told you about his mother, of course." Malon nodded. "She died shortly after relinquishing him to the care of the Deku Tree. His father had disappeared. Everyone thought he had been killed in battle...but he wasn't."

"So...he was alive?" Malon asked, blinking rapidly in confusion.

"No, he was dead."

"But-"

"He killed himself." Malon snapped her mouth shut, her eyes widening. "He had been told that his wife and child were lost because he wasn't there to protect them. They were the only family he had, the only thing he ever fought for."

"But they weren't dead. Well, at least, Link was still alive."

"True," Navi confirmed. "But he had been told otherwise by a spy from Hyrule's enemy. He believed he had lost everything, that he was no longer worth anything with his most precious treasure gone. So...he killed himself. They found his body in Lake Hylia...they think he threw himself into the Gerudo River while his troupe was passing it."

"That's...horrible..." Malon breathed, looking sideways at Link, who hadn't changed his posture at all.

"The Deku Tree told me before I went to join Link on his adventures. He instructed me not to tell him but I...I thought he deserved to know. Now, thanks to my disobedience, he's been terrified that the same fate will befall him.

"No life is so worthless that it should be taken away. Murder is the worst of sins. Murder of yourself is as bad as it gets. Link is not afraid of dying, but he is afraid of despair. You can only imagine the intense amount of despair and worthlessness that led to his father's suicide. Link never wants to feel that. He never even wants to be tempted to kill himself, to make the same mistake. But since Ganondorf has risen to power, he is afraid that everyone he holds dear could be killed, because he wasn't strong enough to protect them. Either that, or he's afraid he will fail, and all his friends will turn from him. He's terrified that he is not a great enough hero, that others don't see him in a positive light. You're his best friend you know..."

Malon blinked confusedly again. "I am?" she squeaked.

"Yup." Navi smiled. "He wants to be perfect for you."

"So that's why he got all upset when I seemed to underestimate him...But why is he scared at all? He's brilliant. He's...he's the nicest person I've ever met..." Navi merely shrugged, gazing blankly at her partner.

"The Deku Tree once said that a person's greatest fear is often the opposite of what could ever happen to them. Something within the human mind turns the thing they need to fear the least into the thing they fear more than anything."

"...Why are you telling me all of this?" Malon asked, never taking her eyes off of Link. Again, Navi merely shrugged.

"I thought you deserved to know. When you talk down about yourself, you not only hurt your own feelings, you hurt the ones who love you as well."

"I'm sorry, I guess I didn't...wait, love? What makes you think Link loves me?"

"Ah...heheh...did I say love? Um...I meant...uh...Hey, why don't you go apologize to him and we can get this whole thing sorted out?"

* * *

"Hi..." Malon said softly, gently placing her hand on his arm.

"You alright?" he answered, looking at her without any emotion.

"Yeah, I'm fine..." Awkward silence followed. "Um, Link, I..."

"Navi told you about my dad, didn't she?" Malon gaped at him.

"H-how did you..."

"I asked her to. I thought you should know."

"You couldn't tell me yourself?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm ashamed of it." He was still completely blank. No emotion, his voice steady and firm. He looked her straight in the eye. "Wouldn't you be too?"

Malon let her eyes fall to her feet and whispered, "Yes..." Awkward silence again. "I'm sorry..." Malon tried, feeling like any words at this point were useless.

"What for?" She looked up and could see that he already knew; he just wanted her to tell him.

"For making you feel bad..."

"You didn't know."

"Doesn't matter. I shouldn't talk down to myself anyways."

"Well, that I could agree with." Link smiled a bit, and for a moment, he looked like he was ten years old again. "Mal, you're a great person. Depressing backstory or not, I still don't like it when you say things about yourself that aren't true."

"Maybe not true to you..." she murmured. "Well, as long as we're sharing all of our deepest secrets with each other...Link, I never told you what happened to my mother, did I?" Now it was Link's turn to blink confusedly.

"What are you talking about? You said she died."

"My step-mom."

"What?" Link wondered why people would never just spit out everything in a way he could understand.

"My step-mom is the one who died. Actually, my dad always told me that she was my real mom. Doesn't matter who you're born to, what matters is who truly loves you."

"Can you start from the beginning, I'm a little lost here..." Malon giggled. One of her greatest faults was her immense amusement in making Link confused. Something about seeing the normally calm, logical, and stony hero confused, blinking his eyes rapidly like a child who was trying to grasp a difficult subject in school was quite endearing to her.

"My real mom was a...Gerudo."

"That explains your hair, then..." Malon simply nodded in response.

"She married my dad and left the Gerudo. Now, it's not strictly forbidden to marry in Gerudo culture, but it is forbidden to have children. Only the Elites are allowed to have children."

"That...makes literally no sense."

"Yeah, tell me about it..." Malon said wryly. "Well, my mother was a Gerudo Footsoldier, which meant she could get married but wasn't supposed to have children."

"But why would that even matter if she was living with your father?"

"It shouldn't matter, but Papa...well, Ingo told me that she'd just been playing with his heart. He said my dad really loved her, and she took advantage of that for a while, fully intending to leave him and return to her home once she'd had her fun."

"That's disgusting..." Link muttered. Malon nodded again.

"Anyways, she found out that her little adventure had accidentally gotten her pregnant. She wanted to kill me so that the Gerudo would never know." Link sucked in his breath suddenly. Something about the idea of Malon getting hurt really stabbed at him emotionally in a way he wasn't sure he fully comprehended. "...But my father wouldn't stand for it," Malon continued. "He said she could go home and leave the baby with him. Of course, by now, he already knew that she had never loved him. So she left him because of me..." Malon paused, her heart hurting again with a familiar pain. She was the reason her father had suffered so much. She couldn't help but think that maybe if her mother hadn't gotten pregnant, then she could have learned to love Talon. A part of her had always wondered...

As usual, Link knew exactly what she was thinking, because she suddenly found herself basking in the comfort of his embrace. He'd always known exactly when to just be quiet and give her a hug. That was one of the many things Malon liked about him. She wrapped her arms around him and found her voice again.

"My dad hired a girl he'd been friends with as a little boy to be my nanny. He couldn't take care of me all by himself. He said she loved me like I was her own daughter." Malon smiled fondly at the memory. "She used to sing to me all the time...she taught me Epona's Song and took care of me, and she helped Papa get over the hurt that my mother had caused. Soon, he fell in love with her and they were married when I was about four. She made him happy again, because she really did love him, too. And me. We were all really happy...but she..."

"...she died, like you said..." Link finished, stroking her hair gently. Malon nodded wordlessly, gulping back tears.

"She was going to have a baby, but something went wrong...and they both died. Papa was so sad he didn't know what to do. He started sleeping a lot, because it helped him forget his troubles. Soon, Ingo and I were the only ones left to properly run the ranch. I think you came in around this time, Fairy Boy..." She grinned and looked up at him. "And you made everything better..."

Suddenly, she buried her face in his tunic again and sobbed her heart out. "I'm s-s-sorry! I j-just m-made my daddy s-so s-sad and I..." Link couldn't hear the rest of what she said, and he didn't know how to make her stop crying. So he just kept petting her hair and hugging her, glancing at Navi pleadingly, hoping for suggestions, but only receiving a little shrug in return.

"...Well..." Link frantically dug through his vocabulary for some words of comfort. "You don't make me sad..." He immediately did a mental facepalm. Yeah, like that would work...

But to his surprise, it actually did. Malon calmed down a bit and actually managed talk again. "Really?" she sniffed. Link smiled, relieved that his weak and inexperienced attempts at comfort had actually worked.

"Yeah...in fact...you make me happier than anyone else I know..."

"Told ya!" Navi whispered in Malon's ear, beaming proudly.

**A/N: Whew! That one took a lot of hard work, but it was worth it. You know, I always wondered if maybe there was more to Malon's past then she let on in the game. Same with Link. I also wanted to use this opportunity to just say... Kids, you need to think really, really, really carefully before you get married. You need to be together forever, otherwise, you'll just wind up causing a lot of hurt to everyone later. This chapter is dedicated to my niece, Eleanor, whose parents recently split up. I know you're hurting, sweetie, and I'm here to make you feel better. **

**Ah, the wonderful fluffles and character development! But for those of you in the audience who are just going "Hurry up!", I promise the next chapter will have more action. Until then, Ciao! -"Niki Bogwater"**


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